Into The Mind of a Dark Horse, While at Adepticon

So time to fulfill another request of what goes through my mind when I am preparing for a gaming convention. I had already mentioned that I don’t really practice with the army or lists I plan on running at conventions as with my gamer ADD I will easily get bored with the army and not want to play it at the convention. Just to give an example of it I played my Skorne at Gencon and it wasn’t until a league ran back in March at a local game store that I played my Skorne again. It regards to what this article is truly about is a focus and putting out there my lists I plan on using during Adepticon and the rationale behind them. I am not going to go into so much detail about the list, tactics, or abilities. I am writing this article in response to the request of the question “why.” The first list presented is my Hardcore Crutch Free 2012 list.

Epic Morghoul +6

Bronzeback 10

Cyclops Brute 5

Gladiator 8

Paingiver Tormentor 2

Paingiver Tormentor 2

Paingiver Task Master 2

Paingiver Task Master 2

5 Gatormen 9

4 Paingivers 2

Blood Runners 5

Blood Runners 5

Void Spirit 2

Void Spirit 2

Total: 50/56

Normally I don’t own 2 of anything, no matter what type of model/unit it is due to the fact that I play everything faction. In this case it is a matter of models that I have gotten through store credit or using credit earned through running demos and tournaments as to why I have multiple like models. As mentioned before this is the Crutch Free 2012 list, though my Crutch Free pledge is a little different than the majority of everyone else. I was told that I have to play Epic Morghoul for a hardcore type setting, though some at the time of the idea of Crutch Free came to be it was said that he would be quite good with the Archidon, so I said “fine, that will be the challenge as I will play Epic Morghoul in a hardcore setting and without the Archidon.” As for why the list is the way it is, theme. I am not running a theme list for Epic Morghoul but I am running a list that is “theme” in a sense, except for the void spirits so just pretend those aren’t there and that includes if we are to play in the tournament, just pretend they aren’t there, lol. Everything in the list is either a paingiver type model or beasts/slaves of the paingiver caste. But again the reason for the list is it does include, and doesn’t include, models that I have to do for Crutch Free 2012 as well as to me it does have some theme within the list.

The next set of 3 lists, with reinforcements, with character restrictions, are my Mercs Masters lists.

Damino +6

Rocinate 9

Rover 8

Di Bray 2

Versh 2

Aiyana and Holt 4

Piper 2

Stannis 4

10 Steelhead Halberdiers 6

10 Steelhead Rifleman 9

5 Steelhead Cavalry 10

Total: 50/56

Reinforcement: Shaw 2, Taryn 2, Nomad 6 (jack marshaled by Shaw)

Drake +6

Mangler 8

Rover 8

Epic Alexia 4

10 Croe’s Cutthroats 10

Hawk 2

Gorman 2

10 Kayazy Assassins w/Underboss 10

Kayazy Eliminators 3

Kayazy Eliminators 3

Madelyn 2

Bokur 3

Reinholdt 1

Total: 50/56

Reinforcements: 10 Nyss Hunters 10

Captain Bart +5

Mangler 8

Mangler 8

Rover 8

Wrong Eye and Snapjaw 9

Bull Snapper 3

Alten 2

Epic Eiryss 3

Kell 2

Ragman 2

10 Kayazy w/Underboss 10

Total: 50/55

Reinforcements: Eliminators 3, Eliminators 3, Dannon and Bull 4

So to first look at why am I running Mercs for Masters, because I felt this would be the perfect time to prove something to the community. I have heard from a lot of people that Mercs in a Divide and Conquer format are no longer playable and if they are then you have to play one list as a theme or basic list, another list has to be completely different from the rest (sometimes pirates if you don’t run a lot of characters of them in your first list), and the last list has to be dwarves (and what few character dwarf models there are make sure you don’t run them in your other lists). I wanted to show that Mercs can be competitive with the right list build in this type of format. Though yes the argument can be made that there had to be a lot of time and effort put into making these lists, I say that is fine and but as I said it is still able to be done. Though you may notice the Bart list is very similar to the Dark Horse list I wrote for him before, with a few modifications to accommodate some feedback from the faithful readers. I also want to point out that for Adepticon Masters this year it is said that there will be 6 rounds and for this Divide and Conquer format we must use each list 2 times. So I guess we shall see how I do, I have my fingers crossed even as we speak.

(Chuck’s List)

Grayle +6

Wilder 2

Feral Warpwolf 9

Pureblood Warpwolf 9

Ghetorix 11

Total: 25/31

(Garrin’s List)

Epic Baldur +5

Megalith 11

Woldwarden 9

Shifting Stones w/UA 3

Druids of Orboros 7

Total: 25/30

This last list is the team list my partner and I plan on running (team name “Hot Chocolate and Cream”). Originally we were trying to come up with some nasty combo for me using Mercs/Cryx and Garrin using Circle, but then that quickly changed. It changed because the idea came to mind “everyone else is going to try for some broken combo, lets be different.” Granted not everybody will be trying for the broken combo but a majority will be. Garrin and I thought about going with a list that has a very low model count, in total we have 18 models in total. More importantly, and the funniest part about my list, there is only 5 models in my list. Thankfully for the low model count as my partner has ran out of time in Gencon Masters Deathclock so it is a good thing we don’t have that many models. I can’t wait to see what this “funny” list will do.

But all in all the thing I look forward to the most with Adepticon is seeing my friends from around the country that I don’t get to see to often. I said it in my Gencon interview and I will say it again, to quote a very wise Asian of the Phatness “the first year you come to the convention you come for the game, the next time you go for the friends you made.”